


Kiss Me Three Times

by Larkawolfgirl



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Canon Era, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Post-Canon, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-21 22:09:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15567384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Larkawolfgirl/pseuds/Larkawolfgirl
Summary: "Kiss me once. Kiss me twice. Once isn't enough." -Chikai, Hikaru Utada





	1. Kiss the First

**Author's Note:**

> Who else is in love with this song and pumped for KH3?

They are nothing more than kids. They know it, and their parents definitely know it. Girls have cooties and they still gag at their parents being overly affectionate. But when the two of them find themselves sitting alone at the end of the pier one evening, sunset painting the ocean background, feet danging restlessly over the edge, Kairi’s head finds its way to his shoulder. 

Sora stiffens for a moment. The only other friend he’s been this physically close to is Riku, and he’s a boy, so it’s different. Upbringing tells him to scoot away. But this is Kairi and he likes her enough to call her a friend rather than a friend who’s a girl (like Selphie). It’s also kind of nice, so he stays put. Kairi’s legs swing in an arch that brushes against his as she moves. It’s weirdly nice to feel her bare calf against his. 

“Hey, Sora?”

“Hmm?” He didn’t realize until now that she’s looking up at him. Her eyes are big and baby blue, her hair more pink than red in the light of the sunset. 

“Do you ever think about getting married?”

“Not really. Why?”

“Well...” she drags out the end of the word as if it should be obvious. Maybe it is to girls. “Don’t you think about the future?”

A grin spreads across his face. “Sure! Me and Riku talk about all the adventures we’re gonna have all the time.”

Kairi lifts her head and curls her lips inward. “That’s not what I mean.”

“Than what do you mean?”

“You, know, like after you finish doing all that stuff. You’re gonna get married. That’s what adults do, right?” Her foot kicks up some water that splashes back toward their legs. 

Sora shifts to face her better. “I guess I never thought about that.”

“Of course not,” she huffs putting her hands on her hips. “Boys! Never practical.” Her voice is huffy but they both know it’s more joke than anything. 

There’s a short silence of inner laughter, then, “You should think about it.” 

She’s looking back at the sunset now, but Sora keeps watching her. Somehow, she looks prettier than usual. Married, huh? He can’t really imagine himself married, but if he had to, then...

“Hey, Kairi?”

“Yeah?” She’s only giving him a side-glance but there’s a little curl at the end of her lip. 

“Do you think about it?”

“Uh-huh. You kinda have to when you’re a girl.”

Sora guessed that made sense. They played with dolls and stuff. “And?”

“And what?”

He turns forward feeling heat rising to his cheeks. Was he really just thinking about them married in the future? Riku is right, he is a sissy. 

When he doesn’t answer, Kairi bumps him with her shoulder. “I’m happy.”

“Oh. That’s good.” His face still feels hot for some reason.

“You know, if I did get married, it’d have to be you or Riku.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because it hasta, you silly.” 

He turns to see her grinning at him. “Okay, but why?”

She giggles and nudges him with her leg. “Because you two found me and accepted me before anyone else did.”

“Oh.”

The sunset almost disappears before he’s finished thinking about that. “Uh, Kairi,” he says with a gulp.

“Yeah, Sora?”

“It’d be you too.”

She isn’t grinning now, it’s smaller and softer than that. It’s prettier too. He’s too busy looking at her face to realize she’s moving closer until her lips are touching his. Again, he stiffens, but then he relaxes. Her lips are warm.

Kairi is the first to pull away, and when she does, she giggles. “You should see your face.”

Sora glances down at his reflection in the water but it’s too dark to see it clearly. He is sure, though, that his cheeks are red. “Please don’t tell Riku!” he pleads and clasps his hands dramatically. 

“Hm?” she hums thoughtfully. “What’s in it for me?”

“My new struggle card set?” Kairi makes a face. “First dibs at the ice cream bar?”

“Better.”

“I’ll show you Riku and my special place.”

Kairi leans in, her eyes sparkling. “Deal!”

 


	2. Kiss the Second

Riku turns away from the gleaming moon to look back at Kairi who is laying flat across the quarter’s window seat. If he didn’t know better, he’d think she is just sleeping. She looks so innocent and helpless, unmoving like this. His hand bunches a fistful of the window’s curtain. He can’t understand how Sora can just ignore her. How can he prioritize his new friends over the two of them who he’s known nearly his whole life? 

He never thought Sora could be unfaithful.

“I’d never abandon you.” The words feel even bitterer on his tongue than they sound. Fist still gripping at the curtain, he stretches out his other hand and traces over a strand of red hair resting upon her forehead. His face shifts from anger to something impeccably soft. “I’ll bring you back, Kairi. Even if I have to do it by myself.”

The moonlight flickers across the sea, and it must be a trick of the light, but it looks as if her eyes twitch. Riku lets go of the curtain and kneels before her still form. He cups her face, willing her eyes to twitch once more, but nothing happens. 

His mind drifts back to the day they first met her, with the sun shining bright and the waves lapping at their ankles. He remembers the sight of her smiles and the sound of her laugh, always the highlight of his day. 

“Please come back. I need you.”

True love’s kiss always wakes the princess in the stories, doesn’t it? He leans down and brushes his lips against hers. Just the briefest of touches and he pulls back, jaw locked.

Kairi lies as lifeless as before. 

Riku turns from her, eyes two shades darker.


	3. Kiss the Third

Sora blinks in confusion as Kairi places his hand over the other’s. His eyes show him Ansem, but as soon as their hands touch, he can  _ feel _ this is Riku--Riku who has been lost to him for over a year, Riku who he’s been afraid of loosing for even longer. His fingers tense over his as his eyes grow watery, obscuring the false image before him. Kairi’s own hand is over his holding it in place. 

Finally, after what feels like such a long time, the three of them are together again. It’s overwhelming, to have assurance for once they are both safe. 

Before he realizes it, tears are escaping and he lets himself fall to his knees. Unlike Riku, he’s never worried much about his pride. He can take this stab to his as he sobs there on the impeccably white floor gripping their hands. 

“Riku! I searched for you.” His voice is wobbly.

Kairi is completely silent, but her eyes command Riku to reply, and he finally does after a long pause. “I didn’t want you to find me. I didn’t want you to see what I’ve become.”

What he’s become? It takes Sora a moment to figure out what he means, and when he does, he gives a wry laugh. “You think we care about that after all we’ve gone through? You’re still Riku no matter what.”

“Yeah,” Kairi agrees, a look equally reassuring and challenging on her face.

Riku glances between them and Sora notices how his eyes have not gone dark to match Ansem’s--they are now a soothing bluish green. 

“You make it sound like nothing’s changed.”

Sora opens his mouth to say that nothing has but clamps it shut, because things have changed. The worlds beyond their own aren’t just grand fantasies anymore, they aren’t children playing hero, and things aren’t as simple as before. But in the ways that matter most, they are the same. Sora pushes himself back up. “So what if things are different? So what if you made some bad choices? You’re still our best friend, Riku.”

“Yeah, but--”

Sora isn’t really sure what comes over him then, he just knows he wants to do something to show Riku he means what he’s saying. He surges forward, cutting Riku off mid-sentence. There’s a gasp from Kairi and a jolt from Riku--both surely caught unawares. That’s fine, because Sora’s just as surprised when he feels their lips meeting. But Riku doesn’t pull away and Kairi doesn’t say anything, so things must be okay. 

This kiss is a little longer than the one he had with Kairi back then. It’s a little more real too. 

When Sora pulls back, they’re all smiling, even if Riku’s is laced with surprised confusion.

“Sora...”

Sora places a finger tip to his lips. “Like I said, you’re still Riku.” He doubts it’s the answer Riku wants, but it’s all he has right now so he better take it.

Kairi chuckles and shakes her head. “Yeah, what he said.” 

Their hands are still held together, the three of them, and none of them are moving away.

 


	4. Kiss Me Three Times

They’ve migrated into Riku’s parents’ basement. It’s cozier than most basements, with a carpeted floor, warm lantern-like lighting, a love-seat snug enough to hold the three of them, and plenty of blankets. The TV’s on, playing a hit movie they all missed out on during the war. White light mixes with the dim orange lighting to illuminate the room better. 

Long-forgotten mugs of hot chocolate sit on the coffee table near Sora’s propped up feet. At some point, Kairi’s head fell to Riku’s shoulder and Sora’s arm wrapped around his arm beneath the fuzzy blue blanket they are sharing. 

Everything feels completely safe and secure, and Riku gives a deep, soul-felt sigh of contentment. For as long as he can remember, the future he dreamed of always held grand adventures and excitement. Now, after seeing what existed outside and living the sort of action he’d once craved, he knows that it isn’t everything it is cracked up to be. Sure, there is a thrill to fighting and a feeling of pride in knowing you are helping those in need, but his dreams were now filled with days like this, when the ones he cared about most are safe and nearby. 

And to think, he used to call Sora the sentimental one.

He must be making a face, because Kairi shifts to look at him. “I can see those thoughts playing in your head.”

“Oh yeah?” he asks with a smirk. “What am I thinking, then?” 

“Hmm...” She crinkles her face as if thinking hard about it. “How much you love us?”

He sputters. 

Sure, they’ve gotten much closer since reuniting, and sure, he has sorta known it for a while now, but still. That isn’t something any of them have ever said aloud. And here Kairi is proclaiming it for him as if it is the most obvious thing in all the worlds. 

Maybe it is, because she laughs at his reaction and even Sora’s smiling. 

“Geez, Riku. What are you freaking out for?” Sora asks. 

Riku rubs the back of his neck with the hand not in Sora’s. “I don’t know...It was just out of the blue.”

“Really?” Kairi asks. 

Riku sighs. “You know what I mean.”

“No, I don’t.” She looks sad now. Why does he suddenly feel like a jerk?

“Naw, I get it,” Sora says in his defense and her sad expression falls on him.

“Seriously, you guys?”

“Hey,” Sora raises a placating hand, “I think he just means we haven’t really discussed this before. Right?” He’s looking at Riku who nods. 

“Oh, that’s all you meant.” She gives a long exhale. “ Don’t scare me like that!”

Riku smiles fondly. “Sorry.” 

“Jeez.” She nudges her head against his. “Boys sure can be dumb sometimes.”

“Then there’s Sora who is all the time.”

“Hey!” Sora retaliates by jabbing his fingers into Riku’s sides.

“Ah! Stop!”

“Not till you apologize.” 

Sora’s got that cheeky grin of his on and his eyes are sparkling like sunlight across the open sky. Riku’s caught staring which leaves him completely open to Sora’s attack. On reflex, Riku’s body flinches backward into Kairi who takes advantage of the opening to secure her arms around his shoulders. 

“Got you!” she says proudly. 

Sora is jabbing at him non-stop and tears are streaming down Riku’s cheeks by this point. 

“Stop. I give. I’m sorry,” he cries between outbursts of laughter. 

“I don’t know, Sora, should we let him off so easily?”

Thankfully, Sora stops tickling him, but he shares a worrying grin with Kairi. 

“Hey, guys--” Riku begins to protest, but it is cut off when Kairi pecks him on the cheek. 

He gulps, taken off-guard. 

Sora’s lips turn up even further and he leans in to peck him on the opposite cheek. “There,” he says afterward, “that’s your punishment.”

“Punishment?” Riku asks incredulous. If that was his punishment, what would a reward be? He can feel his face growing hot at that thought. 

“You better be glad that’s all you’re getting,” Kairi says in that high-handed way of hers that always makes him smile. 

Riku lets himself relax against her. “You sure I don’t deserve more punishment?” 

There’s a brief moment of silence before the three of them burst into laughter.

“Oh my god! Riku.” Sora smacks at his chest.

“I was gonna give you another as a reward, but I guess I won’t now...” Kairi trails off playfully. 

Riku leans his head back to look up at her. “No, I’ll be good, I promise.” His tone’s over-the-top but wins her over anyway. 

She grins and twists her face around to give him a proper kiss this time. Sora’s still near his front, and Riku can feel his whole body growing pleasantly warm. When Kairi moves away, Sora is quick to take her place. Afterward, he presses himself to Riku’s front to reach Kairi. All three kisses are lazy, but it’s a lazy day, so it is expected. Even this kiss he isn’t a part of makes Riku feel warm and loved. 

It’s...nice.

Eventually, they rewind the movie and attempt to watch it. Riku can no longer focus on it, though, as his head swims with thoughts of kisses and possibilities. 

There will be plenty of time, he reminds himself as he squeezes both their hands.

 


End file.
